* Area: Unlimited thigh liposuction * Surgery timing: early September 2025 * Suction volume: 3600 cc * Pre-op stats: mid-30s, 56 kg, 161 cm, iron level on the edge (I already had a slight tendency toward anemia, so I was only barely cleared for surgery) Up until now, I had always had a huge lower-body complex, and even when I weighed 48 kg, there was still no thigh gap, so my upper and lower body proportions were very unbalanced It's been about 2 weeks now, and I’m satisfied overall. No regrets I have quite a lot of muscle, and even though the swelling still hasn’t fully gone down, the shape of my legs already looks longer and different But there were also many things that were different from what I was told during consultation or what I found out in advance, and especially I had no idea the recovery period would be this hard In the hope that it helps others who are deliberation among similar options Rather than prep before surgery, I’ll mainly post the recovery notes I recorded by date after surgery (review event x, no promised review with the clinic x, paid fully out of pocket. Please think of this as a realistic review + it may vary from person to person!) *** It’s a long post, so the 3-line summary is at the very bottom --- [ Experience up to the surgery] * Consultation experience - I had consultations at three places: ㄹㅇㄹㅇ, ㄹㅇㅌ, and ㅊㅇㅅ, and decided on ㄹㅇㅌ - All three were well-known for liposuction and the consultations were kind, but I just had the best feeling about ㄹㅇㅌ and the price was reasonable too - Wherever you go for a consultation, they’ll try to get you to leave a deposit somehow, so make sure to get consultations at at least 2 to 3 places - They’ll try to tempt you on the spot with lines like, “If you book right now, you can get this price,” so if that bothers you, try to schedule all your consultations on the same day and ask whether that price still applies if you reserve only today - ㄹㅇㄹㅇ explained that they have a patented technique, so 4000 cc or more is possible, and that they have a method for removing even the small fat cells, not just the large ones, and so on.. - ㄹㅇㅌ and ㅊㅇㅅ said 3000 to 3400 cc, and when I asked, “Other places say they can do more,” they answered that what matters is not forcing out more while keeping the same shape, but creating a straight line and extracting it beautifully - The doctors were all similarly kind and explained whatever I wanted to know. Consultant talk about 30 to 40 minutes + doctor consultation about 10 minutes * Surgery - I arrived around 9:30 a.m., took photos, got an explanation, received the care kit, and did the prep, etc. - I was assigned a clean, private individual recovery room, which I really liked - I met the doctor, got the design done (quick marker strokes), went into the operating room, and drifted off pleasantly, almost like going to sleep for an endoscopy - When I opened my eyes, I was already back in the recovery room wearing the compression garment. I was told the surgery took about 2 hours? 2.5 hours? It seems I left the hospital around 2:30 p.m.?? - As soon as I came to, I touched my thighs, and it was honestly amazing that part of my thighs was gone Even though there was swelling, there was space between my thighs, so I was overwhelmed + While you’re still a bit dazed from anesthesia, don’t force yourself to put on accessories on the way home; just put everything in your bag I tried to put on earrings and lost the back piece --- [ Key points summarized from the experience up to day 14] Q. Recommended timing for surgery? Spring and autumn are recommended. You probably already know summer is off-season, and winter is hard too because your feet swell up like an elephant’s and socks become difficult, shoes don’t fit well The most comfortable combo is a long skirt + bare feet + soft shoes, so definitely do it in spring or fall!! Plan for about a month of recovery!! Q. What’s good to prepare in advance before surgery? - Long skirt: ankle-length or similar, and not too flared (you may not move well and could step on it) - Soft slippers: Crocs are recommended!!! Hard slippers like three-stripe slides are painful and won’t work. Shoes that fit your feet perfectly normally won’t work either (your foot size gets bigger). No flip-flops. Choose soft shoes that cover the top of the foot too - Old pumpkin juice: I drank 2 packs a day because they said it helps swelling go down faster - Pharmacy medicine for swelling: if you search online, a few options come up, like ㄴㅂㅇ. I didn’t buy any at first, but by day 4 I couldn’t take it anymore and bought two kinds right away. If it’s thigh liposuction, definitely take it - Tylenol: I was told it was okay to take extra on top of the prescribed medicine, so I took 2 a day, morning and evening. Buy about four boxes generously - Bruise cream: the hospital I had surgery at included bruise cream in the aftercare kit, but since the area was so large, I used it all up in 2 weeks. You can buy more in the middle if needed - Porridge: I ate it as my staple food for a week. Since I had to lie down a lot, something that digests quickly was convenient. Early on, porridge is great for going to the bathroom too - Adult diapers: optional, but since it was my thighs, peeing was really inconvenient, so I used them occasionally during the first week because I thought it was better Q. How long should I take time off work? I had surgery on Friday morning, and the consultant said I might be able to go back to work by Monday, so I had that in mind, but for me it was impossible (who exactly can do that...??) From the day of surgery to the next day, the swelling hadn’t really peaked yet, but it was dangerous because of the anemia-like feeling and low blood pressure From day 3 to day 7, swelling was at its peak, so my calves couldn’t even bend to 90 degrees, and when I walked I shuffled along awkwardly But in general consultants tend to talk about recovery periods as shorter than they really are, so you should think it will take about 3 or 4 extra days before you really feel like that For reference, I ended up taking 2 weeks off, and only then did I feel like I could finally work again If possible, I recommend taking 2 weeks off - Office job: I recommend at least 1 week off, but if that’s not possible, use holidays or long weekends and put something under your desk where you can rest your feet, then keep your legs stretched out as much as possible - Jobs that require standing or repeatedly standing up and sitting down: it seems like you need 2 weeks off.... (standing work makes swelling worse and makes it hard to bend the legs) - Work from home: from around day 4 or 5? you should be able to work (if you have surgery on Thursday and go back to work the following Monday, that should be fine) Even then, you need to lie down briefly every hour or keep your legs extended; your body will feel tired Q. Can you go home by public transport on the day of surgery??? (+ precautions right after liposuction) ***************** Sigh... this is the most important part.... I strongly recommend going by taxi or ride-hailing service. No public transport Again, in my case I had no pain after surgery and felt totally fine, so I wondered if maybe this was just how my body is I even asked the consultant how much arm liposuction would cost and left after asking the price too Going home by taxi would’ve taken 1 hour 20 minutes, but the subway would take 45 minutes, so I took the subway As a result, I fainted and collapsed twice on the subway and was taken to a university hospital emergency room........ Again, I was perfectly fine, but climbing a few stairs and getting slightly out of breath led to low blood pressure (my initial blood pressure dropped as low as 70/50) It’s a surgery with bleeding, so of course blood pressure drops The moment you get even a little short of breath or get jostled by people, you can collapse It doesn’t matter how healthy you normally are or whether you have anemia or not On the day of surgery, absolutely do not walk a lot or tire yourself out; call a car, go home, and lie down in bed. Low blood pressure recovers quickly if you lie down That’s based on a large-area thigh procedure, but be careful even if it’s another area I absolutely, absolutely do not recommend going home by public transport on the day of surgery. If you’re in a suburban area, definitely arrange a ride On the day itself and the next day, do not schedule anything at all and make rest at home mandatory for at least two days Q. Can surgery be done during your period? They said surgery is possible with a tampon even during menstruation, but I personally don’t recommend it During your period, your body condition is already lower, and I think bleeding plus more bleeding is not good. If possible, avoid it Q. From day 3, swelling gets severe and when I wear the compression garment it feels like blood isn’t circulating. Is it right to keep wearing it? Even if you ask the hospital, unless there’s someone there with thigh liposuction experience, I don’t think you’ll get a helpful answer Based on what I heard and my experience combined, swelling peaks between day 3 and day 7, and the timing differs a bit from person to person In my case, the part where the compression garment folded over near the knee and calf was the tightest, and my foot sometimes felt numb There was also a time when I took it off and slept because the swelling was too severe, but when I woke up the next day, the swelling was much worse The compression garment seems helpful for swelling because it firmly presses on the subcutaneous layer (Recommended by my 기준, with the day of surgery counted as day 1) I kept wearing it through day 4 -> From day 5 to about day 7, when I felt numbness, I took it off during the day and wore it when sleeping -> By around day 12, the swelling had gone down quite a bit, so wearing it during the day wasn’t too hard -> Around day 14 to 1 month, when it gets a bit loose, the hospital can alter it Taking it off and putting it back on isn’t impossible, but it’s hard because the skin pulls a bit too. If you wear it, it’s best to keep it on for as long as possible --- [ Daily body condition log] * I thought I’d forget the hard parts as time passed and only remember how satisfied I am, so I recorded a diary by date in advance Day 1 (Fri) - Right after surgery, I actually felt okay. Pain and swelling started increasing little by little around the first night - Because I went to the ER, I barely remember the first day. Absolute rest is the most important thing Day 2 (Sat) - I was a little dizzy until the morning of the second day. I think I definitely needed at least 2 days of rest. I recommend not scheduling anything - The pain was a bit worse than yesterday. Even though the swelling was still severe, I had a thigh gap, which was so surprising and satisfying - Squatting was impossible. Picking up things from the floor was sort of possible. Going up and down stairs slowly was possible. Still, when I went up stairs and got a little out of breath, my head felt woozy - In addition to the prescribed medicine, I took 1 ㅎㅁㅌ hematinic supplement a day (the one I usually take), plus extra Tylenol morning and evening Day 3 (Sun) - Swelling got worse than yesterday. It spread to my calves too. Bruising also came down quite a bit and my legs felt extremely swollen. Since I couldn’t bend my legs, going downstairs was hard - I took about three walks near home and spent the rest of the time eating and sleeping. The medicine makes you sleepy, so sleeping was easy - I barely managed to use the bathroom - I had originally planned to rest only until this day, but moving around was so uncomfortable that I decided to take one more day off. If possible, I recommend taking as long off as you can after surgery Day 4 (Mon) - Swelling got even worse. In the afternoon, the compression garment was so tight that blood circulation felt cut off, so I kept taking it off and putting it back on. My feet were so swollen I looked like an elephant - Bruising was dark blue and deep red all the way down to the middle of my calves; it was a mess. Sensation in my thighs still hadn’t returned (numb and hypersensitive like they were anesthetized) - Since I really couldn’t handle it anymore, I started taking pharmacy medicine for swelling. Since the calves and thighs were swelling together, the fold areas were hard to bend Day 5 (Tue) - I was trying to go back to work, but the swelling was so bad that I decided it just wasn’t possible and took two more days off - Putting on and taking off the compression garment was incredibly hard Day 6 (Wed) ----- Peak Day 1 - I slept without the compression garment for the first time, and when I woke up the swelling was noticeably worse. It seems like the morning and the swelling peak day overlapped - I went back to the hospital where I had surgery. I got an IV drip and another 5 days’ worth of prescribed medicine - I thought going back to work would be impossible, so I just decided to take the whole week off and took two more days of leave - Depressive feelings started to come.... can my leg really go back to normal.... I didn’t want to do anything Day 7 (Thu) --- Peak Day 2 - The swelling was similar to yesterday (for the first time). I thought maybe yesterday was the peak - My legs still didn’t bend well, and if I sat in a chair for about 30 minutes, I felt like my blood circulation was getting cut off - Eating, sleeping, and taking short walks near home was my daily routine for the seventh day in a row. Even walking fast was hard Days 8 (Fri) to 11 (Mon) - From this point on, the swelling started to go down little by little each day - But my body still felt so exhausted (even simple movements took a long time and required caution, so it was tiring) - The bruising and pain had apparently moved down to my feet too, because even when my foot touched the soft Crocs, it hurt Days 12 (Tue) to 15 (Fri) - Just like before, every time I got up, the swelling clearly started to decrease. Large bruises still remained dark blue mainly around the areas where fat was removed - The swelling wasn’t all gone, but compared with before surgery it became a more balanced straight-leg shape - Mainly around the areas where bio-bond formed, my muscles didn’t stretch well, like they were injured. As the swelling went down, range of motion gradually improved, but as of week 2 I still couldn’t swing my legs back and forth properly while walking - My ankles hurt a lot - My skin is a bit delicate, and a skin allergy-like rash came up in the inner fold of my knee, which hurt (probably because the compression garment kept rubbing there) Day 16 (Sat): Came in for suture removal ---- + For reference, according to the consultants, the swelling peak is most often around day 3 to day 4 after surgery, but for me it came on days 6 to 7, and when they saw me on the day my stitches were removed after 14 days, they said I still had quite a lot of bruising compared with other people and did laser care Recovery speed and progress differ from person to person, so please use this as a reference only I’ll post the next review when it’s been about 1 month!!! *** 3-line summary - For thigh surgery, definitely go home by car on the day of surgery and rest completely - You need to wait at least 14 days after surgery before you feel somewhat okay again (think carefully when taking time off) - Even after 14 days, swelling is still left and the range of motion of the muscles is reduced, so stretching or exercise is still not possible
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Liposuction Fat removal Thigh liposuction Body contouring
This review is a post-surgery review that pursues natural beauty.